1970 Dodge Challenger R/T - Red Earth Hemi

The Missabe iron range of Minnesota was noted for one thing: tons upon tons of red earth. Only this was not dirt, but taconite ore, which crossed the Great Lakes on freighters like the Edmund Fitzgerald to feed the hungry mouths of the blast furnaces of Youngstown and Pittsburgh. It is fitting, then, that muscle cars would get painted colors like FK5, the code for Chrysler's Dark Burnt Orange Metallic, about as close to raw ore as you can get. What is even cooler is that this car now resides in the North Star State, and the reflective sheen you see in the photos is due to the same paint applied on the assembly line at Dodge Main in Detroit way back in 1970.

2/7A day-two modification (sort of) is this key slot in the driver-side fender, which arms an alarm system.

That originality was one of the factors that lead current owner Bruce Bartie to step up and buy the car back in 2004.

This thing was built for running hard

"Original cars are a treasure from the muscle era," he says. "This car was sold new by Lynnway, Dodge in Lynn, Massachusetts, for $5,927 to a man named William Perry. I would like acknowledge him and all the previous owners, especially Dave Wright, who chose to maintain and preserve this car as a time capsule from that special era."

That it made it into the 21st century nearly intact is impressive, but the big deal about this particular R/T was its mile-long options list (which that buy-in at almost six large verifies). Among the cool gear built onto this Challenger for delivery were the slatted rear window louvers, front spoilers, deck-mounted wing, stripe package, drip and wide sill moldings, full vinyl roof, and hood pins. And that's just on the outside; inside are the console, leather upholstery, six-way driver's seat, light group, tach, AM/eight-track, left remote mirror, and Rallye dash.

3/7Among the options ladled onto the Challenger’s exterior were the full vinyl roof, rear window louvers, and “gull-wing” rear airfoil. All the extras on this car drove its original selling price to nearly $6,000—big money in 1970.

4/7A previous owner commissioned John Arruzza to rebuild the Challenger’s motor for streetability, with a cleanup overbore, fresh pistons and rods, and a pump-gas-friendly cam. All the exterior engine components, except for the MSD distributor, are correct for ’70.

It was 1970, and Challenger was all-new for that year. When Mr. Perry picked it up on June 2, 1970, we are pretty certain the dealer mechanics had given it a good final look. After all, this thing was built for running hard. The 15x7 Rallye wheels with wide F60-15 Goodyear rubber, power front disc brakes, power steering, a 4.10 rear gear in the Super Performance Dana 60 axlehousing, and a Slap-Stik-controlled A727 TorqueFlite were all part of it, ready to respond instantly when the twin AFBs under the air cleaner began breathing heavy.

Those two carbs were the signature topping on the 426 Street Hemi during its production era. The '70 model was notable in Hemi history in that it was the first model fitted with a hydraulic cam. The engine was a little tired when Dave purchased the Challenger. So, while the body and interior are untouched, Hemi guru John Arruzza went through the motor in 2003, doing a complete rebuild internally with durability in mind. This included a cleanup 0.030 overbore, fresh Ross pistons and Manley rods, and a somewhat "healthier than stock" Comp Cams pumpstick. We say "pump" because Arruzza's handiwork was done to make sure the car would run on pump gas! The only other change, easy to reverse, was the use of an MSD ignition setup and distributor.

5/7Bruce Bartie calls his largely original Challenger “a treasure from the muscle era.” Other than a freshening of the tired Hemi underhood, the E-Body is as-delivered by the factory, right down to its distinctive Dark Burnt Orange Metallic paint. With 4.10 gears in the Sure Grip diff and a Hemi under the long hood, this Challenger was built to run, and run hard. Too bad the tight streets around the convention center didn’t allow for long open-throttle blasts.

The big deal about this particular R/T was its mile-long options list

Like most original cars, this one has a few quirks that are part of its personality. For instance, above the Challenger emblem on the driver's side is an inconspicuous round lock opening. This was for an alarm, added to prevent somebody from hot-wiring the car back when it was a cruiser in New England. Nonetheless, little else has been done to the car recently beyond detailing, simply making sure it is kept up and preserved. Bruce went through automotive school in the '70s and does all the work on his own cars.

6/7One of the things that attracted Bruce to this Challenger was its long list of options. The cockpit is dressed out in leather upholstery, a console, a Rallye dash, and an eight-track player.

Today, Bruce's business success and mechanical prowess have allowed him to own a number of original cars, including a '70 Hemi 'Cuda and an M-code 440 6BBL Road Runner. The latter was at MCACN this year, where we shot the Challenger in 2012.

Editor's note: Wild About Cars (www.wildaboutcarsonline.com) has in its magazine archive a May '70 Hi-Performance Cars road test of a Hemi 'Cuda similarly equipped mechanically to this Challenger. Their quarter-mile times were significantly faster than the C/D times mentioned in the At a Glance box. Check it out!